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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24594325">Dark Academia AU (Reddie)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/spaz21/pseuds/spaz21'>spaz21</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>AU, Aged-Up Losers Club (IT), Alternate Universe, Dark Academia, Drinking, Friendship, Friendship/Love, M/M, Party, University, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Love</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 07:00:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,338</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24594325</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/spaz21/pseuds/spaz21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Richie wants to tell Eddie how he feels, but a mansion party with English majors skews his plans</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Dude, You Suck (Richie's POV)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It was late on a Sunday night when Richie began to write Monday’s paper. The library was going to close soon, and there was no way he’d get it done at home. The paper was for a short story he had read for English. It was about kids on Jupiter who never see the sunshine. He found the story interesting, but he had no interest in regurgitating those thoughts on to paper. He felt like he had a lot on his plate though he only had the paper to finish. He had committed to something he couldn’t remember now.</p><p>The library was dead quiet. He longed for some sort of sound. The only people around were those who were fellow procrastinators, it seemed. However, it wasn’t all bad. Richie loved how old the library was. Growing up, he didn’t spend much time in libraries, but as an adult, they were a nice retreat from the outside world. Along the top of the walls were stained glass windows and skylights that let the moon light in. The carpet was as old as the university.</p><p>Rich loosened his necktie a bit, trying to settle into his seat. He looked around at the few people that remained. They all were in their own working momentum. Pencils writing, books being skimmed, low whispers and sips of coffee that had gone cold hours ago. However, Rich was not in that momentum yet. Diving into that stack of blank papers did not feel appealing to him. Rich picked up the pen, ready for a moment, then backed down. <em>This sucked.</em> As he wallowed, he couldn’t help but feel like he was missing something. Another assignment? He was sure he would be caught up after this was over with.</p><p>Somewhere in the library, a big wooden door opened. Rich turned to see Eddie walk in. He was out of his uniform and wearing a polo shirt, shorts and old converse. Eddie met Rich’s stare and he walked over to his desk. Richie realized what he was missing.</p><p>Earlier that night, Richie was supposed to meet up with Eddie and Ben to go to the drive in. They had planned to do an “illegal double feature”, they liked to call it, where you pay for one movie and just stick around for the next one. Rich had lost track of time and he had completely stiffed his friends. His stomach sank as Eddie approached; the guilt slowly set in.</p><p>“It was tonight, wasn’t it?.” Rich said.</p><p>“Yeah.”</p><p>“Damn it.” he sighed. </p><p>“It’s the first night all semester we finally get to hangout together and you just bail. What the hell?”</p><p>“I just forgot about this paper and I thought I could get it done before we met up… How was the movie?”</p><p>“We didn’t end up going.”</p><p>“Eds, I’m sorry.”</p><p>Eddie didn’t acknowledge Richie’s apology. Instead, he stood there, staring down at Rich. Rich looked down and started to drum his fingers impatiently. The two were in a lock.</p><p>“Did you even finish the paper you were so caught up in?” Eddie finally said.</p><p>“Yeah, it’s real interpretive.” Rich joked, showing him the blank paper.</p><p>Eddie let a chuckle slide. Rich felt the tension ease a bit.</p><p>“You gonna finish it?” Eddie asked, probing.</p><p>“I mean, yeah. I have to.”</p><p>“But I mean realistically… Tonight?”</p><p>Rich could feel something coming. A proposition that sounded a thousand more times enticing than writing a half-assed paper about kids on Jupiter.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Party (Richie's POV)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They made small talk as Eddie drove off campus. Ben sat up in shotgun, shuffling through his music. Richie sat in the back. From across the parking lot, Rich saw the lights in the library shut off all at once. He had gotten out in the nick of time. With the little sleep he had, the people leaving the building and the lights going out, he’d probably slump at the desk and call it a night. Those were some good sleeps. The kind that feel well deserved - the good sleep. Rich could go for one those right now, but that was out of the question.</p>
<p>They were on their way to a house party of a guy in their comparative civilizations lecture – <em>Josh? James? A guy with short brown hair on baseball team. </em>Ben said that his parents were out of town. Apparently, it was a huge place in one of those neighborhoods where every house is hanging off the side of a hill. Killer view of the city, Eddie says. The whole skyline out the back and a huge garden in the front.</p>
<p>Rich thought they were exaggerating, but as they climbed the endless, winding hill of expensive homes, he didn’t call their bluff. The place looked like it belonged to Jay Gatsby. The driveway was long, party goers spilling out onto it and the street. Near the garage, there was that huge garden. Old willow trees, bushes of flowers and fruit, tall hedges surrounding the property, old porcelain and concrete statues being slowly enveloped in the climbing ivy.</p>
<p>Eddie grabbed their beer from the trunk. The host- Josh, Rich soon learned- had said they could stay over if they found a spot to sleep. Eddie said he would sleep in the car; Ben was going to figure it out when it came time and Richie was ready to drink until the sun came out. “Sleep is for the weak,” he said.  </p>
<p>Inside, music thumped. The speakers had been blaring since 9 pm and it was a quarter to midnight. There were no neighbors to speak of, thankfully. As the boys walked into the party, they were greeted by Josh and his group of friends. They were very much the “Ivy League” crew; nice clothes, rich parents, perfect teeth, athletic and social. They looked like the stereotypical jock group, but they were far from it, at least to Richie and his friends. They were warm, welcoming, friends with everyone who came in. Though they were all these things, Richie continued to feel disconnected from them. He had seen them be pleasant when everything was in order. So far, no chaos had ensued tonight. Richie knew from experience that in chaos, true character shines through. He supposed that’s were the distrust came from. He’d seen his friends in panic, in stress, and at the end of their ropes. He just couldn’t get a read on Josh and his friends. He found he got pickier with people as the years went on. Tonight, was for fun, not over thinking. So, Rich took off his tie threw it next to a pile of shoes and followed his friends to the balcony.</p>
<p>The city looked like a strip of Christmas lights in the distance. It was like the top of a roller-coaster. Eddie chucked him and Ben beers.</p>
<p>“One…” Ben counted, “Two…”</p>
<p>“Wait!” Eddie said, “Are we going on ‘three’ or ‘and go’?”</p>
<p>“We go on ‘four’,” Richie said. “What do you think!”</p>
<p>“I wanna know the rules. I’ve been practicing, and I think I can finally take you guys.”</p>
<p>“Hah, bet.”</p>
<p>“Okay, we go on ‘three’,” Ben said, “One… Two… <em>Three!</em>”</p>
<p>Ben and Richie thought they had this in the bag, Eddie was half their size and he hadn’t been drinking much since he turned nineteen. But to their surprise, Eddie was the first to crush his can.</p>
<p>“BULLSHIT!” Richie cried out.</p>
<p>“Fair and square, shit-stick!” Eddie retaliated.</p>
<p>Over the years, Eddie embraced vulgarity. Richie couldn’t help but feel he had some influence on this.</p>
<p>“I don’t buy it.” Richie said.</p>
<p>“Rematch, then.” Eddie challenged.</p>
<p>Ben got them each a beer and began to count down, only to find that lighting strikes twice. Smug, Eddie challenges them to another round. Richie takes him on. Ben taps out and decides to just watch Eddie’s superior technique. Beaten again, Richie calls for another rematch.</p>
<p>“Take it easy,” Eddie said, “Don’t tap out too early.”</p>
<p>“What? Afraid you can’t beat me… another… time?” Richie said.</p>
<p>Richie’s stomach felt like a Cola bottle full of Mentos. A breather might be a good idea, but he wanted to have this win.</p>
<p>“Dude, I beat you. Just give up before I have to pump your stomach!”</p>
<p>“Is that a promise?” Richie says before leaning over the balcony to puke.</p>
<p>“Gross.” Eddie laughed.</p>
<p>Richie’s vomit landed with a <em>thwap</em>. This was the beginning of the night, the part where you break in your stomach. The boys chuckled at the vomit. The foam from the puke fizzled in the grass below.</p>
<p>(Later)</p>
<p>After their little pre-game, they joined the rest of the party. Ben found some his classical lit friends in the living room; Eddie found a game of beer pong. Richie followed Eddie to the game, but before he could reach the table, Eddie already picked his teammate and the opponents had begun to set up the cups.</p>
<p>“Hey! Eds!” Richie called out over the music.</p>
<p>Eddie was busy egging on the guys across the table.</p>
<p>“Eds!” Still nothing.</p>
<p>Richie wanted to go over there and say something. He wanted to Eddie to chose him, but now he was sure, he was overthinking things. He stepped away from the table and headed towards the kitchen where a people were taking tequila shots. They sounded like they were having a good time.</p>
<p>He took a seat next to a girl with long brown hair. The guy at the counter poured him a shot in little solo cup. Richie took the lime and salt and threw it back.</p>
<p>“Hey,” the brunette said, “we’re doing them together.”</p>
<p>“Oh, oops.” Richie said.</p>
<p>He looked around to see no one else at the counter but her. Was she making a move on him?</p>
<p>“No biggie. Pour him another.” She says to the guy behind the counter. “What’s your name?”</p>
<p>“Rich, but my friends call me Richie.”</p>
<p>“’Rich’ sounds too formal. Can I call you Richie?”</p>
<p>“Depends who’s asking.” Richie said.</p>
<p>“My name’s Jessie,” She replied, “I feel like I’ve seen you on campus before. What’s your major?”</p>
<p>“English, at the moment, but I swear I’ll drop out if I have to read any more Faulkner.”</p>
<p>“Ugh, same. I went into this thinking we’d be reading stuff like Vonnegut and Wilde, but apparently that doesn’t happen until, like third year.”</p>
<p>“Whack. So, you’re a fan of Vonnegut?”</p>
<p>“Oh, hell yeah. I’ve read ‘Cat’s Cradle’ more times than I’d like to admit, ha-ha.”</p>
<p>“I’ve only read ‘Slaughterhouse Five’ but that guy is a genius. I was laughing and feeling sad at the same time, which is insane. I haven’t met a lot of people who dig that guy.”</p>
<p>“I know! It’s like, how do you get into English if you’ve never even heard of him? He’s pretty damn legendary.</p>
<p> “Here ya go.” The bartender said giving them their tequila</p>
<p>“To Vonnegut.” Jessie toasted.</p>
<p>“Cheers.”</p>
<p>The two threw back their drinks and laughed. It didn’t take long for Richie to feel the spins. Not the brutal kind, but the lazy river kind. He started to feel like he was lying on his back in a warm pool of water, slowly getting swept away by the current. In the back of his mind, he sensed that tonight, things were going to get out of hand, but something told him that that was okay. Richie was starting to sink into place, a calm place.</p>
<p>You don’t need to be so possessive of your friends, Richie though to himself, they’re their own people<em>. Their own sweet… adorable… independent people- don’t think about Eds - he’s not thinking about you. </em></p>
<p>Anxiety started to wriggle around in his stomach. He knew that he was making it worse by thinking about his friend. To relieve the stress, he decided he needed to talk Eddie. <em>Just figure this out so you can relax. It doesn’t have to be so complicated. </em></p>
<p>So, Richie pulled out his phone and sent a quick text. He watched his friend across the party, hoping he’d see the text, see him, and they could talk then and there. Instead, Eddie kept playing his game. Annoyed, Rich turned back to Jessie and they threw back another shot. He wanted to relax.</p>
<p>From across the room, someone shouted something about a game. Spin the bottle? Or truth or dare? Before Richie could think, Jessie had grabbed him, and they were on their way. He looked back at the beer pong table, watching Eddie and his team cheer as they sunk another cup.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Please Tell Me I'm Not Crazy (Eddie's POV)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Tried something new with this chapter. Hopefully, it lands. Haha</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Part One – Dude, You’re so Dense</strong>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>Eddie knew that he was in love with his best friend. It wasn’t a new epiphany, and it certainly wasn’t an ‘out-of-the-blue’ feeling. In fact, he could pinpoint the day his feelings manifested.</p>
<p>It was during their freshman year of university at a small party in the woods. It was a mixer for all the people staying in their residence hall. In September, the air was fresh, Eddie remembered making sure to wear a thick sweater and a jacket so he wouldn’t catch a cold. He remembered telling Richie to do the same over the phone. Of course, Richie didn’t care about the cold. He showed up wearing his uniform minus the tie and jacket. Eddie remembered being slightly annoyed at him for ignoring his advice, but he wasn’t complaining because he did look good in that uniform.</p>
<p>That might have been a turning point – admitting his friend was handsome – because after that, the pieces fell into place.</p>
<p>At some point in the night, Eddie remembered, a group of people were playing “Suck and Blow”, where you take a card, pucker your lips, and suction your lips to it and try to pass it to the next person’s lips without using your hands. It usually ended up with someone dropping the card on purpose to kiss the person beside them, people usually sat strategically that way. For Eddie, it was no exception.</p>
<p>For a long time, he had questioned his feelings for Richie, but it wasn’t until they left Derry that he felt that he could explore them. What did kissing a boy feel like? What did kissing <em>him </em>feel like? Would he like it? Would it just be a one-off thing to get these questions out of the way? He wouldn’t know unless he tried.</p>
<p>So, when his turn came, he leaned to his friend and bravely let the card slide. Their lips met for a moment. Eddie felt his legs go numb with nerves, his head felt light. The second felt like forever before Richie pulled away. The group of freshmen cheered, oo’d and awed.</p>
<p>When Richie pulled away, he didn’t look at Eddie, he just turned back to the crowd and started to laugh. Like it was a bit. Awkwardly, Eddie turned away as well, trying to look like he was in on it. That warm feeling of hope quickly changed to that a sinking feeling in his gut. Had he ruined it by being that bold?</p>
<p>Eddie wanted to follow up about it. He thought about talking to his friend explaining his actions. Saying sorry, saying something. More than anything, he wanted Richie to talk about it. He wanted him to break the silence, acknowledge that it was weird, or that he felt something or nothing, just mention so it could feel real. But Eddie never broke the silence. He didn’t want to make another bold move and feel that sinking feeling again. It was hard to explain, that feeling. It felt like his insides were being deep fried in shame.</p>
<p>It had been two years since that incident. Eddie had kept it bottled up ever since. He hadn’t drunk much through university, knowing that if he had enough to drink, he’d probably spill his guts to the closest person. He say, unprompted: <em>I’m in love with my best friend and I’m too much of a pussy to tell him! </em> </p>
<p>If it didn’t land well, he could blame it on drinking. It was stupid, he knew that, but it was the best plan he could come up with over the past two years. Anytime now, it was bound to happen. He just had to plan it accordingly, not force it.</p>
<p>          </p>
<p><strong>Part 2 – And, So Am I</strong>   </p>
<hr/>
<p>When Richie wasn’t answering his texts that night, Eddie got worried. He got worried that he had been bugging his friend too much. For the past week, in fact, he’d been feeling like that. Every chance he got, he invited Richie along. Eddie had felt them drift a bit since the semester started and they were in different lectures for Art History. He knew he wasn’t giving Richie any breathing room, but it wasn’t like his friend to ignore his texts. They had planned to meet with Ben to meet at the movies at 8 pm. Eddie hadn’t said anything about the party on the hill. He was going to casually mention it to Richie when they got to the movies, even though Ben and he had planned to go anyhow. When 8:30 rolled around, Eddie still hadn’t heard anything from their friend.</p>
<p>            “Maybe we should go check on him,” Ben had said.</p>
<p>Eddie was relieved that Ben had suggested so he didn’t have to look desperate. Eddie saw that Richie’s snap location was last updated 6 hours ago at the library on campus. So, the boys got in Eddie’s car and went. It seemed a bit desperate, Eddie had thought, but it felt necessary. What if a bookshelf had fallen over on him and no one had seen it? Or what if he had had an aneurysm and died at his desk? In the moment, Eddie didn’t care about how pushy he was being. In the end, it had paid off.</p>
<p>On their way up the hill, Eddie contemplated going through with his plan. He worried it would come across as pre-meditated. He worried that Richie hadn’t remembered the “accidental” kiss and that he’d look like an obsessive freak. But in a small way, he felt brave tonight. Maybe it was the flats of beer in the back of his car that gave him hope, but booze or no booze, the party was the perfect place to do it. First, he would get absolutely trashed. Then, he’d wait for the moment to bring up the incident, and he’d just come out and say it. Being bold once again. If things went sideways, Eddie could sneak back into the sea of people, Richie could do the same. There was an escape, and that’s what Eddie liked about the plan, even if the escape was short term.</p>
<p>After the first few beers, that’s when Eddie remembered chickening out. He had been egging on his friend with shot gunning the beers, he was trying to build up his confidence in a way. He had to work himself up to being as bold as the night of the kiss. But there was a wave of grease sloshing around inside him again. That sinking feeling was in full throttle. Richie was so close to him. Eddie’s fears of rejection settled back in. He remembered feeling that he had to get away before the truth broke loose. He wanted to just get it over with. To slow his roll, he joined a game of beer pong.</p>
<p>He saw Richie follow him. He ignored Richie trying to get his attention. He focused on the game, trying to re-center himself. He watched Richie sit at the makeshift bar and start talking a girl – Jessica? Jessie? – and knew the window was slowly closing. He blew it. He cowered away and it started to annoy him. He tried not to show it. He tried to focus on the game, but envy started to rise. This confirmed the worst, his friend was not in love with him.</p>
<p>Eddie was ready to give up right then and there, that is, until his phone buzzed.</p>
<p>           </p>
<p>            <strong><em>NEW MESSAGE: RICHIE</em></strong><em>; Hey, can we talk? </em></p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Eddie looked up from his game. Richie and the girl were gone.</p>
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